Inspiring lessons that I have learned from couples, whose interfaith weddings I officiated.

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

In Love with My Best Friend

Sunday evening, I officiated
Evonne and Roberto’s wedding ceremony at Ma Maison, in Dripping Springs, Texas.
Here are the remarks I shared with them and their guests:

At a recent wedding I
officiated, the groom walked out to a string version of one of the best songs
about romantic relationships, in my opinion, Lucky, by Jason Mraz. When I sat
down to write these remarks about Evonne and Roberto, I couldn’t help thinking
about this song, not just because of the name, but particularly because of one
specific line. I think it speaks to the deep love these two share. Jason sings
a duet with Colbie Caillat, and it’s kind of a dialogue between two lovers:

Do you hear me, I'm talking
to you
Across the water across the deep blue ocean
Under the open sky, oh my, baby I'm trying
Boy, I hear you in my dreams
I feel your whisper across the sea
I keep you with me in my heart
You make it easier when life gets hard

I'm lucky I'm in love
with my best friend…

Why did this remind me of
Evonne and Roberto? Well, the last line I just quoted tells us that the
characters in the song didn’t just have a fling, or some type of superficial
love at first sight nonsense. No, this is a deep relationship, where the lovers
have a deep connection based on a foundation of friendship. That, my friends,
is Evonne and Roberto’s story. Luck may have brought them together, but they
took it from there.

Evonne says, “Roberto and I
met through a summer internship program… I can still remember the very first
day we met and it wasn’t long until I knew that him and I were something very
special – two old souls…” Roberto says, “I could tell there was depth there. We
started dating shortly after when I asked her out to dinner, [and] we…
designated Wednesday nights as our date nights away from the group. Through
these dates we built a bond of friendship…” And what did this bring about?
Evonne tells us, “I remember the very last day of the program when Roberto’s
flight was hours before mine. He calls my cell phone to say hello and not long
into the call we became emotional. I believe in this moment I knew – he
was for me as I was for him.”

Wow, is that cool or what?

There is one hazard, not
often thought of, connected with this type of thinking, and that is that you
might take yourself too seriously. Not Evonne and Roberto, though. Roberto says
that they “always keep… life together interesting,” and he adds, “If there’s
one thing I know [it] is that we strive to always remember to enjoy life.” And
Evonne tells us, “There is nothing that compares to the joy this man brings
into my life. He makes me laugh until my stomach hurts, and this
to me is his greatest quality.”

Evonne and Roberto, what we
wish you is that continue to follow this path of deep love and friendship,
continue to recognize how lucky you are, and continue to laugh together as
often as possible. Do that, and you will have this “marriage thing” made…